Liquid Science Speaker Series Starts with Sturgeon

February 4, 2004

Not only did lake sturgeon make a fine dinner 150 years ago but gelatin from the inner lining of its air bladder was used to make isinglass – a substance used in jellies, glues and the windows of carriages and early cars. Soak up more sturgeon facts and a variety of Great Lakes-related information through the Liquid Science Speaker Series.

On February 10, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Mid-Continent Ecology Division and the University of Minnesota Sea Grant Program and are launching the monthly Liquid Science Speaker Series with, “Resurgence of Lake Sturgeon.” This hour-long presentation by Dr. Nancy Auer, with the Department of Biological Sciences at Michigan Technological University, will begin at 7 p.m. at the Hartley Nature Center in Duluth. On February 11, Dr. Auer will offer a similar presentation at the North House Folk School in Grand Marais, at 7 p.m.

“The demise of the lake sturgeon from the Great Lakes Fishery following its hey-day in the late 1880s is a classic Great Lakes story,” said Auer. “The reasons for its lack of rebound once the fishery was closed and the current problems faced by some populations make equally fascinating sequels.”

Auer plans to tell these stories and discuss the unusual life and odd habits of this large bony-plated fish. Based on her 16 years of sturgeon research in the Sturgeon River, MI, she will review hopeful management practices and research directions for these “living fossils of fish evolution” in the Lake Superior region.

The Liquid Science Speaker Series presentations are free and for the public. All presentations are scheduled from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. with receptions immediately following to encourage conversations with the researchers. The complete Liquid Science Speaker Series schedule is as follows:

February — Resurgence of Lake Sturgeon

Duluth, Hartley Nature Center (3001 Woodland Ave.), February 10

Grand Marais, North House Folk School (500 W. Highway 61), February 11

March — E. coli in Lake Superior

Duluth, Hartley Nature Center, March 9

Grand Marais, North House Folk School, March 10

April — WOW! Water on the Web

Duluth, Hartley Nature Center, April 13

Grand Marais, North House Folk School, April 14

May — Linking Land Use to Water Quality

Duluth, Hartley Nature Center, May 11

Grand Marais, North House Folk School, May 12

June — Invasive Species of the Great Lakes

Duluth, EPA Gitchee Gumee Conference Facility (6201 Congdon Blvd.), June 8

Grand Marais, North House Folk School, June 9

July — On the Edge! Great Lakes Coastal Research

Duluth, EPA Gitchee Gumee Conference Facility, July 13

Grand Marais, North House Folk School, July 14

August — Great Lakes in a Changing Climate

Duluth, EPA Gitchee Gumee Conference Facility, August 10

Grand Marais, North House Folk School, August 11

September — Restoring Coaster Brook Trout

Duluth, EPA Gitchee Gumee Conference Facility, September 7

Grand Marais, North House Folk School, September 8

For more information, visit Liquid Science online or contact Minnesota Sea Grant by e-mail or by phone (218-726-8106).

This series was made possible in part by a grant from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources-Waters and Minnesota’s Lake Superior Coastal Program through the Coastal Zone Management Act, which is administered through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management.